by Ann Oldenburg, USA TODAY

by Ann Oldenburg, USA TODAY

Of all the women Bachelor Sean Lowe could have picked for his first one-on-one date, he chose Sarah Herron, 25, an ad exec from Colorado who was born with only one full arm.

Herron, one of 16 women still in the running for Lowe's heart, said in a press call today that, yes, maybe her disability, the result of a birth defect, has given her an advantage.

"It helped me stand out and catch his attention, and I'm grateful for that."

She says, "I think what happened is I introduced myself to Sean and made an impression and he saw me as a unique, strong, courageous individual and that I deserved this opportunity as much as anybody else." It made her feel, she says, "like the most lucky girl in the world."

And their date was no picnic, although they had one afterward. The two jumped off a skyscraper in downtown Los Angeles, doing a free-fall for 300 feet. Although we saw her screaming as it happened, she said today it was "cool" and "adventurous."

The decision to come on the show has been an adventure, too, admits Herron. "I was nervous. I knew I was putting myself out there and I knew America was going to see me in my most vulnerable state."

But she "decided to bite the bullet and apply" after seeing Lowe, 29, on Emily Maynard's season of The Bachelorette. "I was really interested in him. He's incredibly attractive."

When she was accepted for the show, she says, "It was kind of this dream come true. I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around it."

Now, she has become something of a role model. "I've been doing a little reading of comments online and on some message boards. It seems to be incredibly positive and I get overwhelming feedback from women saying I've inspiring them and motivated them." She continues, "I truthfully went on the show to meet Sean, but if I'm a role model for anybody, I'm honored that people perceive me like that."

It wasn't something she had thought about. "I was worried about Sean liking me. I was never was concerned what the public was going to say or people were going to say. I've grown up with it my whole life. I'm not concerned about being talked about."

Lowe, she says, immediately put her at ease about everything. "Here's the thing, I think most women have their insecurities whether it's your weight or your style or the color of your hair. Everybody has something about them that they don't feel awesome about. For me, my barrier is having one arm."

She brought it up with Lowe on the first night they met and, she says, "It was important for me to let him know everything that I could ... and be open and honest." And, she adds, "He made it clear he was comfortable and we could just move on."

Herron says the Bachelor women, who can get pretty catty as they compete, were also "very, very, very sweet. The girls were welcoming and encouraging, and immediately just bonded with me so well. I feel like it's very strange how close I got with the girls and they all just wanted me to succeed and do well."

So far, anyway.

And if she doesn't end up with Sean, who's a good match for him? "I honestly really think Lesley M.," says Herron, referring to the 25-year-old political consultant whose hometown is Fort Smith, Ark. "I think she's a wonderful girl with a great career and she's beautiful and has an amazing body and she's so cool. I really see this great spark happening between them. I think Lesley M. is a possible contender."

But stay tuned, Herron says. "The next episode is going to be a pretty big shocker. There's a lot of drama that happens next Monday night. It's going to be interesting to see how it all unfolds. We're all finally settled into the house and seeing true colors come out, and I think things are going to start to get interesting."